Mercurial User Guide

NetBeans IDE provides support for the Mercurial version control client versions 1.0.x and higher. The IDE's Mercurial
support allows you to perform versioning tasks directly from your project within the IDE. This document demonstrates how
to perform basic versioning tasks in the IDE by guiding you through the standard workflow when using versioning software.

Mercurial is a fast, lightweight source control management system
designed for efficient handling of very large distributed projects. Unlike CVS and Subversion, Mercurial works with distributed repositories
which are commonly used in many open source projects and supports distributed development without any centralized control. You can use
Mercurial commands on both files and directories. The IDE provides a graphical Diff Viewer that enables you to compare file revisions and also supports inline diffs directly in the editor.

The IDE's Mercurial support is similar to the IDE's Subversion support. The main difference is that Mercurial is a distributed revision control
system. Users typically begin by cloning an external repository to work with. This clone is a complete copy of the repository including the revision
history. You can clone the local copy as often as needed and when ready, push locally made changes back to the original repository if you have permissions, or
export the changes and send them to the repository owner if you do not have permissions.

Setting up Mercurial

Before you can take advantage of the IDE's Mercurial support, you need to have Mercurial client software installed on your system. The IDE supports Mercurial client versions 1.04 and higher. The IDE's Mercurial support works by using the same commands as the Mercurial command line interface.

Select the Miscellaneous icon along the top of the dialog, then click the
Versioning tab. In the left pane under Versioning Systems, select Mercurial.
User-defined options for Mercurial display in the main window of the dialog:

In the Mercurial Executable Path text field, either type in the path to the
executable file or click Browse to navigate to it on your system. Note that
you need not include the Mercurial executable file in the path.

Click OK.

You can run Mercurial commands from the IDE's Team > Mercurial menu after the Mercurial client is set up. To clone an external Mercurial
repository, choose Team > Mercurial > Clone Other. In the process of cloning, the IDE automatically imports all of the history and status
information for the cloned files.

If you have an existing Mercurial repository, the IDE automatically recognizes them as versioned files if those
files are opened in an IDE project or if they are added to the Favorites window. You can use Mercurial commands on the files from
the Mercurial menu or by right-clicking a file or folder and choosing from the Mercurial contextual menu.

To create a Mercurial repository on your computer using the command-line, type in the following:

hg clone /path/to/your/repository

Note: The NetBeans Mercurial repositories (http://hg.netbeans.org/) are used for demonstration purposes in this tutorial.

Synchronizing Local Files with a Repository

When using a version control system, you work by synchronizing local files with a repository, making changes to your local copy, then committing them to
the repository. The following list describes various ways you can synchronize
a project in the NetBeans IDE, depending on your specific situation:

Opening a Mercurial Project in the IDE

If you already have a Mercurial versioned project which you have been working
with outside of the IDE, you can open it in the IDE and versioning features
will automatically become available to you. The IDE scans the open projects, file status and context-sensitive
support automatically becomes active for Mercurial versioned projects.

Checking out Files from a Repository

If you want to connect to a remote repository from the IDE, then check out
files and immediately begin working with them, do the following:

In NetBeans IDE, choose Team > Mercurial > Clone other from
the main menu. The Clone wizard opens.

Note: The IDE's drop-down menus are context-sensitive,
i.e. the available options depend on the item currently selected.
Therefore, if you are already working within a Mercurial project,
you can choose Versioning > Checkout from the main menu.

In Repository URL, enter the path to the repository (e.g. http://hg.netbeans.org/main).

In the User and Password fields that the Clone wizard displays, enter your netbeans.org username and password.

If you are using a proxy, be sure to click the Proxy Configuration button
and enter any required information in the Options dialog box. When you are certain your connection
settings to the repository are correct, click Next.

In the second step, click Change to the right of the Default Push Path field. The Change Push Path dialog box opens.

In the Parent Directory field, enter a location on your computer where you want
repository files to be checked out to (alternatively, you can use the Browse button).

Note: If you are running Windows, be careful of the path length that you specify; i.e., C:\Documents and Settings\myName\My Documents\NetBeans\etc\etc can cause an unsuccessful clone due to very long file paths. Try using C:\ instead.

Leave the Scan for NetBeans Projects after
Checkout option selected, then click Finish to initiate the check out
action. The IDE checks out the specified sources and the IDE's status bar
indicates the progress of the files downloading from the repository to your
local working directory. You can also view files as they are being checked
out from the Output window (Ctrl-4 on Windows/Command-4 on OS X).

Note: If the checked out sources contain NetBeans projects,
a dialog box appears prompting you to open them in the IDE. If the sources do not
contain a project, the dialog appears prompting you to create a new project
from the sources and then open them in the IDE. If you create a new project
for such sources, select the appropriate project category (in the New
Project wizard) and then use the With Existing Sources option within that
category.

Importing Files into a Repository

Alternately, you can import a project you have been working on in the IDE to
a remote repository, then continue to work on it in the IDE after it has
become synchronized.

Note: While you are actually exporting files
from your system, the term 'import' is used in version control systems to
signify that files are being imported into a repository.

Specify the repository folder in which you
want to place the project in the repository. A folder containing the name
of your project is suggested for you in the Root Path text field
by default.

Click
OK to initiate the Mercurial initialize action.
Upon clicking OK, the IDE uploads the project files to the repository
and the Output window opens to display the progress.

Note: After the project files are placed under Mercurial version control, they get registered in the repository as Locally New. The new files and their status can be viewed by clicking on Mercurial > Status from the right-click menu.

Note: The committed files are placed together with the .hg directory in the Mercurial repository directory. The commit details are available in the IDE Output window (Ctrl-4 on Windows/Command-4 on OS X).

Editing Sources

Once you have a Mercurial versioned project opened in the IDE, you can begin
making changes to sources. As with any project opened in NetBeans IDE, you can
open files in the Source Editor by double-clicking on their nodes, as they
appear in the IDE's windows (e.g. Projects (Ctrl-1 on Windows/Command-1 on OS X), Files (Ctrl-2 on Windows/Command-2 on OS X), Favorites
(Ctrl-3 on Windows/Command-3 on OS X) windows).

When working with sources in the IDE, there are various UI components at your
disposal, which aid in both viewing and operating version control commands:

Viewing Changes in the Source Editor

When you open a versioned file in the IDE's Source Editor, you can view real-time
changes occurring to your file as you modify it against your previously checked-out
base version from the repository. As you work, the IDE uses color encoding in the
Source Editor's margins to convey the following information:

Blue
( )

Indicates lines that have been changed since the earlier revision.

Green
( )

Indicates lines that have been added since the earlier revision.

Red
( )

Indicates lines that have been removed since the earlier revision.

The Source Editor's left margin shows changes occurring on a line-by-line basis.
When you modify a given line, changes are immediately shown in the left margin.

You can click on a color grouping in the margin to call versioning commands. For
example, the screen capture below left shows widgets available to you when clicking
a red icon, indicating that lines have been removed from your local copy.

The Source Editor's right margin provides you with an overview that displays
changes made to your file as a whole, from top to bottom. Color encoding is
generated immediately when you make changes to your file.

Note that you can click on a specific point within the margin to bring your
inline cursor immediately to that location in the file. To view the number of
lines affected, hover your mouse over the colored icons in the right margin:

Left margin

Right margin

Viewing File Status Information

When you are working in the Projects (Ctrl-1 on Windows/Command-1 on OS X), Files (Ctrl-2 on Windows/Command-2 on OS X), Favorites
(Ctrl-3 on Windows/Command-3 on OS X), or Versioning windows, the IDE provides several visual features
that aid in viewing status information about your files. In the example
below, notice how the badge (e.g.
), color of the file name, and adjacent status
label, all coincide with each other to provide you with a simple but
effective way to keep track of versioning information on your files:

Note: Status labels are textual indication of file status in the Versioning, Projects, and Files windows. To display status labels, choose View > Show Versioning Labels from the main toolbar.

Badges, color coding, file status labels, and perhaps most importantly,
the Versioning window all contribute to your ability to effectively
view and manage and versioning information in the IDE.

Badges and Color Coding

Badges are applied to project, folder, and package nodes and
inform you of the status of files contained within that node:

The following table displays the color scheme used for badges:

UI Component

Description

Blue Badge
()

Indicates the presence of files that have been locally modified, added or
deleted. For packages, this badge applies only to the package itself and
not its subpackages. For projects or folders, the badge indicates changes
within that item, or any of the contained subfolders.

Red Badge
()

Marks projects, folders or packages that contain conflicting
files (i.e. local versions that conflict with versions maintained in
the repository). For packages, this badge applies only to the package
itself and not its subpackages. For projects or folders, the badge
indicates conflicts within that item, or any of the contained subfolders.

Color coding is applied to file names in order to indicate their current
status against the repository:

Color

Example

Description

Blue

Indicates that the file has been locally modified.

Green

Indicates that the file has been locally added.

Red

Indicates that the file contains conflicts between your local
working copy and the repository's version.

Gray

Indicates that the file is ignored by Mercurial and will not
be included in versioning commands (e.g. Update and Commit). Files
can only be made to be ignored if they have not yet been versioned.

Strike-Through

Indicates that the file is excluded from commit operations.
Strike-through text only appears in specific locations, such as the Versioning
window or Commit dialog, when you choose to exclude individual files from a
commit action. Such files are still affected by other Mercurial commands,
such as Update.

File Status Labels

File status labels provide a textual indication of the status of versioned
files in the IDE's windows. By default, the IDE displays status (new, modified,
ignored, etc.) and folder information in gray text to the right of files, as
they are listed in windows. You can, however, modify this format to suit
your own needs. For example, if you want to add revision numbers to status
labels, do the following:

File status labels can be toggled on and off by choosing
View > Show Versioning Labels from the main menu.

The Versioning Window

The Mercurial Versioning window provides you with a real-time list of all
of the changes made to files within a selected folder of your local working
copy. It opens by default in the bottom panel of the IDE, listing added,
deleted or modified files.

To open the Versioning window, select a versioned file or folder (e.g. from
the Projects, Files, or Favorites window) and either choose Mercurial >
Status from the right-click menu, or choose Team > Mercurial > Status
from the main menu. The following window appears in the bottom of the IDE:

By default, the Versioning window displays a list of all modified files within
the selected package or folder. Using the buttons in the toolbar, you can
choose to display all changes or limit the list of displayed files to either
locally or remotely modified files. You can also click the column headings
above the listed files to sort the files by name, status or location.

The Versioning window toolbar also includes buttons that enable you to invoke
the most common Mercurial tasks on all files displayed in the list. The
following table lists the Mercurial commands available in the toolbar of the
Versioning window:

Icon

Name

Function

Refresh Status

Refreshes the status of the selected files and
folders. Files displayed in the Versioning window can be
refreshed to reflect any changes that may have been made
externally.

Diff All

Opens the Diff Viewer providing you with a side-by-side
comparison of your local copies and the versions maintained in the
repository.

Update All

Updates all selected files from the repository.

Commit All

Enables you to commit local changes to the repository.

You can access other Mercurial commands in the Versioning window by selecting a table
row that corresponds to a modified file, and choosing a command from the right-click menu:

For example, you can perform the following actions on a file:

Show Annotations:
Displays author and revision number information in the left margin of
files opened in the Source Editor.

Revert Modifications:
Opens the Revert Modifications dialog which you can use to specify
parameters for reverting any local changes to revisions maintained
in the repository.

Comparing File Revisions

Comparing file revisions is a common task when working with versioned
projects. The IDE enables you to compare revisions by using the Diff
command, which is available from the right-click menu of a selected
item (Mercurial > Diff), as well as from the Versioning window.
In the Versioning window, you can perform diffs by either double-clicking
a listed file, otherwise you can click the Diff All icon () located in the
toolbar at the top.

When you perform a diff, a graphical Diff Viewer opens for the selected
file(s) and revisions in the IDE's main window. The Diff Viewer displays
two copies in side-by-side panels. The more current copy appears on the
right side, so if you are comparing a repository revision against your
working copy, the working copy displays in the right panel:

The Diff Viewer makes use of the same color encoding
used elsewhere to display version control changes. In the screen capture
displayed above, the green block indicates content that has been added to
the more current revision. The red block indicates that content from the
earlier revision has been removed from the later. Blue indicates that
changes have occurred within the highlighted line(s).

Also, when performing a diff on a group of files, such as on a project,
package, or folder, or when clicking Diff All
(), you can switch between diffs by clicking files
listed in the upper region of the Diff Viewer.

Make Changes to your Local Working Copy

If you are performing a diff on your local working copy, the IDE enables you to
make changes directly from within the Diff Viewer. To do so, you can either
place your cursor within the right pane of the Diff Viewer and modify your file
accordingly, otherwise make use of the inline icons that display adjacent to
each highlighted change:

Replace ():

Inserts the highlighted text from the previous revision into
the current revision

Move All ():

Reverts the file's current revision to the state of the selected
previous revision

Remove ():

Removes the highlighted text from the current revision so that it
mirrors the previous revision

Navigate among Differences between Compared Files

If your diff contains multiple differences, you can navigate among them by
using the arrow icons displayed in the toolbar. The arrow icons enable you
to view differences as they appear from top to bottom:

Previous
():

Goes to previous difference displayed in the diff

Next
():

Goes to next difference displayed in the diff

Merging File Revisions

NetBeans IDE enables you to merge changes between repository revisions and
your local working copy. Specifically, this combines two separate changesets in a repository into a new changeset that describes how they combine.

In the Projects, Files, or Favorites window, right-click the files or
folders on which you want to perform the merge operation and choose
Mercurial > Merge Changes. The Merge with Revision dialog displays.

In the Choose From Revisions drop-down list, select the revision. You are porting all changes made on a local working copy file from
the time it was created.

Ensure the Description, Author, and Date data are correct.

Click Merge. The IDE incorporates any differences found between the
repository revisions and your local copy of the file. If merge conflicts
occur, the file's status is updated to Merge
Conflict to indicate this.

Note: After merging revisions to your local working
copy, you must still commit changes using the Commit command in order for them
to be added to the repository.

Committing Sources to a Repository

After making changes to sources, you commit them to the repository. It is
generally a good idea to update any copies you have against the repository
prior to performing a commit in order to ensure that conflicts do not arise.
Conflicts can occur however, and should be thought of as a natural event
when numerous developers are working on a project simultaneously. The IDE
provides flexible support that enables you to perform all of these functions.
It also provides a Conflict Resolver which allows you to safely deal with any
conflicts as they occur.

Updating Local Copies

You can perform updates by choosing Team > Update from the
main menu.

To perform an update on sources that you have modified, you can click
the Update All icon (), which displays in the toolbars located
at the top of both the Versioning Window,
as well as the Diff Viewer. Any changes that
may have occurred in the repository are displayed in the Versioning
Output window.

Performing the Commit

After editing source files, performing an update and resolving any conflicts,
you commit files from your local working copy to the repository. The IDE
enables you to call the commit command in the following ways:

From the Projects, Files or Favorites windows, right-click new or
modified items and choose Mercurial > Commit.

From the Versioning window or Diff Viewer, click the Commit All
() button located in the toolbar.

The Commit dialog opens, displaying files that are about to be committed
to the repository:

The Commit dialog lists:

all locally modified files

all files that have been deleted locally

all new files (i.e. files that do not yet exist in the repository)

all files that you have renamed. Mercurial handles renamed files by
deleting the original file, and creating a duplicate using the new
name.

From the Commit dialog, it is possible to specify whether to exclude
individual files from the commit. To do so, click the Commit Action column
of a selected file and choose Exclude from Commit from the drop-down
list.

To perform the commit:

Type in a commit message in the Commit Message text area. Alternatively,
click the Recent Messages ( ) icon located in the upper right corner to
view and select from a list of messages that you have previously used.

After specifying actions for individual files, click Commit. The IDE
executes the commit and sends your local changes to the repository.
The IDE's status bar, located in the bottom right of the interface,
displays as the commit action takes place. Upon a successful commit,
versioning badges disappear in the Projects, Files and Favorites windows,
and the color encoding of committed files returns to black.

Updating Issues

You can update an issue by associating your commit action with an existing issue in your repository's issue tracker. To do so, click on the Update Issue heading in the Commit dialog box to expand it, then specify the following:

Issue Tracker: Specify the issue tracker that your repository uses, by selecting an issue tracker from the drop-down list. The drop-down provides you with a list of all issue trackers registered with the IDE. If your repository's issue tracker is not registered, click the New button to register it.

Issue: Specify the issue ID. You can do this by typing in the ID, or part of the description.

You can also specify the following options:

Resolve as FIXED: When selected, the status of the issue is marked as Resolved.

Add Commit Message from Above: When selected, the commit message is added to the issue.

Add Revision Information to the Issue: When selected, the issue is updated to include the revision information such as the author, date, etc. You can click Change Format to modify the format of the revision information that is added to the issue.

Add Issue Information to Commit Message: When selected, the issue ID and summary are added to the commit message. You can click Change Format to modify the format of the issue information that is added to the message.

After Commit: When selected, the issue is updated after you commit the changes.

After Push: When selected, the issue is updated only after the changes are pushed to the repository.

Pushing Local Changes to the Shared Repository

Before pushing changes that you have committed locally to the shared repository, you need to synchronize your local repository with the shared repository. To do this with the Fetch command, choose Team > (Mercurial >) Fetch - [Mercurial repository name] from the
main menu.
After you perform a successful Fetch, your local repository becomes synchronized with the shared repository.

To push changes, choose Team > (Mercurial >) Share > Push to - [Mercurial repository name] from the
main menu. The output from a successful Push will list any changesets created.

Note: Since you maintain a copy of the entire repository on your system, the general practice is to make multiple commits to your local repository and only after the particular task is complete, perform the push to the shared repository.

Summary

This tutorial showed how to perform basic versioning tasks in the IDE by guiding you through the standard workflow when
using the IDE's Mercurial support. It demonstrated how to set up a versioned project and perform basic tasks on versioned
files while introducing you to some of the Mercurial specific features included in the IDE.